Tales of Knighthood: Camelot Chronicles
by Lightning Chaos
Summary: A Sonic and the Black Knight adaptation with an original twist. There is never a dull moment for our heroic blue hedgehog; his vacation is cut short when he finds himself falling face first into the land ruled by King Arthur.
1. Chapter 1 - The Fall of a Hero

- CHAPTER ONE -

_The Fall of a Hero_

"So there we were, face to face with that freaky dragon looking thing that lives in the planet's core." Sonic recalled, unsticking a nacho from his cheesy pile – complete with hot sauce, guacamole and extra jalapeños.

He was sat on the counter of the diner owned by Don Fachio. The business had been doing rather well and the owner had invested in opening up several branches around Central City. Sonic visited most days he was in the area for the chili dogs. In his opinion, nobody did them better. His favourite diner was located on the east side, overlooking the canal. This was odd, considering his general distaste of water. Dusk was approaching and the sun was setting, bathing the diner in the long shadows of the tall buildings on the opposite side of the water.

"It wasn't up to full power." Sonic continued, chasing a slice of jalapeño around the plastic tub in his hands with the chip. "I mean, it was like it was waiting for me to show up or something." He said, finally capturing his prey and stuffed the entire creation into his mouth. "The rest of the Gaia energy was in _me_ at the time, so then it saw it as the chance to take it back. Man, it _really_ hurt as well – transforming back into myself, that is. I was lucky though; the Gaia energy sorta registered how you looked before the transformation kicked in, meaning that I got my shoes back every time. Sweet, huh?"

"How is that even possible?" the plump landlord said raising an eyebrow as he looked over from wiping a glass clean.

Sonic shrugged his shoulders, scooping up the rest of the guacamole onto his nacho. "I was just happy I wasn't gonna be fighting that thing barefoot. It was pretty hot down there, y'know."

"Then what happened?" the landlord urged, "Did you go gold?"

Sonic shook his head and lent back against the red and white chequered tiles behind him. "I told you, we left the Emeralds back in the temples, but even if we didn't, there was no way I could have pulled it off right there and then. Chip's the real hero. I was as good as out after all that. The next thing I knew, I was led at the entrance of a floating temple. I've seen floating islands before, but boy, this was a whole 'nother story!"

"A floating temple? Now I've heard everything."

"Ah, you ain't heard nothin' yet." Sonic winked, dropping the tub onto his lap and rubbed his gloved hands together. "The temples from all over the planet sorta pulled a mega merge mode into this huge giant colossal thing. It _rocked_. Get it? 'Cause it's made of rock. Anyway, old cranky sorta got even crankier and started lobbing rocky fireballs at us. Nothin' new."

"So, the monster with the power to tear planets apart settled for lobbing rocks at you? That's a bit cheap."

"Naw, it underestimated us, I'll bet – didn't wanna waste any of its true power until it had a good reason."

"Don't tell me. You two gave that thing a huge beating and saved the day."

"It wasn't that easy. It's _never_ that easy. That was only round one. Cranky went through a… _disturbing_ transformation and started sucking up energy from, well, _everywhere_. Ugh, all those extra eyes and limbs still give me nightmares. Anyway, things were getting ugly, so I needed to even the odds with a transformation of my own. Mine was just downright _awesome_ though. I didn't sprout extra arms or anything." Sonic finished off the last of his nachos and jumped down from the counter to his feet. "Anyhoo, I think it's time I got going. I think I've kept Amy waiting long enough and as much as I'd love to miss this date with her, I did promise her a movie after all that." He announced, stretching his quad muscles briefly. "I think I'll take a chili dog to go. In fact, make that two."

"Alright then." The landlord laughed, straightening up. "Let's do this the Don Fachio way…"

Sonic arched an eyebrow and went on tip-toe to lean over the counter. "I'm listening."

"If you can get these two 'dogs to the gal in one piece, they're on the house."

"Come on, that's a bit harsh. You're expecting me to just _look_ at them on the run over? Let's sweeten the deal here…"

"I can work with that." The guy shrugged, "You can have one of them."

"Ouch." Sonic rolled his eyes, drumming his fingers in a quiet rhythm_._ "That's gonna be tough."

"You in?"

"You don't ever see me passing up the opportunity for free chili dogs. You're on." The two shook on it and several minutes later, Sonic was outside with a chili dog in each hand.

Sonic gazed up at the sky and tried to figure out what time it was. It was grey and cloudy; the sun's rays could be seen spilling through the gaps in the clouds due to the moisture in the air. It had been quite a cold day in the city – all the tall buildings acted as wind tunnels and pulled the air into powerful whirlwinds that swarmed the streets below. It had also rained. Sonic had tried to convince himself that this wasn't the reason he had spent the majority of the day at his favourite lunch spot, mentioning the finer details of his latest adventure to the landlord – all the stuff he had forgot to mention in the interview for the article 'Do Blue Hedgehogs Dream of Electric Eggs?' in last week's World Treasure magazine.

The interview earned him a beating from Knuckles, claiming that he was 'just so full of himself all the time' and that he was 'just taking any chance he got to show off and running with it'. In truth, the only reason he agreed to the interview was to help the reporter get on with her career. In addition to that, she seemed to be the only person covering the story and it was such a big deal, with the world in pieces and all. People needed to know.

"Where am I going, again?" Sonic mused to himself, glancing down at the hot dogs in his hands. They smelt _so good_. "Right, Amy…" He groaned, wishing he had the heart to turn down her request to begin with. At the time, he thought he owed her for sticking with him despite everything that had happened. He couldn't put that faith in anyone but Tails and this meant something to him. To Sonic, this was no date, this was merely him saying 'thank you for being a good friend'.

This was a date. Sonic gritted his teeth and marched around the building and down the street. "It's just a one-time thing." He assured himself in a panicked grumble. "Nothin' to run off in the opposite direction for…"

Sonic stared at his feet and watched as the shallow puddles he trudged through splattered his shoes with murky water. "I'm going on a date with _Amy_!" He said out loud, stopping in his tracks and shot his gaze up to the dull sky above. "Can the ground just suck me up and swallow me? Please!"

And the ground did just that.

xXx

When falling out of the sky, one must consider several things. How you have managed to get yourself in this unlikely situation in the first place. Attempt to ignore the images of your life flashing before your eyes long enough to figure out how you are planning to land safely and maybe check if you have any rings on hand as landing safely might not be an option.

"WOAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" This is Sonic, he found himself in this situation by falling through the ground. He lands on his head – big surprise. Ring count: zero.

Sonic led face in the dirt for a few moments. His head spinning, a single thought crossed his mind.

_Man, it's great to be me._

Neglecting everything that had just occurred, Sonic bolted upright and caught sight of his falling snack in the sky. He yelped and jumped to his feet. With no delay whatsoever, he shot off in one direction to grab the first tumbling chili dog in one hand and threw himself in the other onto his front to snatch up the second inches from the dirt. Now, _that_ was a close one. He stared at his saved chili coated sausage dog and marvelled at his little achievement.

It then suddenly occurred to him that he was supposed to be concerned about his location and staggered to his feet. "Hey… _where am I?_" This entire experience was weirding him out. He couldn't help but stand there arching an eyebrow with his mouth half open – Amy would never believe this, in fact, he was having trouble believing it himself. He was standing in the middle of nowhere. Judging by the cloudy dull sky, it was early dawn and he began to wonder if he had blacked out overnight or something as it was in late afternoon in Central City. There was a stony path beneath his feet that disappeared into the hazy fog swallowing the land ahead of him. To his right, crows circled an animal carcass of some sorts, cawing in alarm due to the sudden unrequested company of a vibrant blue hedgehog that had just fallen out of the sky.

"Being from a distant world!" A small voice was heard from behind him. What the… another _world?_

Sonic glanced over his shoulder at a young woman dressed in purple robes, looking very prominent indeed and he began to wonder why he hadn't noticed her sooner – especially with that giant staff in her hands. She crouched to his level and pulled back her hood to reveal large pointy ears and plaited thulian pink hair. "Forgive my abrupt summons!" Well, that explained a lot. So, this elf lady summoned him from another world. For what reason, well, it was plainly obvious considering that she was being tailed by an army of armour-wearing monsters. She needed help. _That_ was it!

Sonic's ears pricked to the sound of clattering footsteps in front of him. He darted his gaze back to the path ahead to find another armour-wearing figure slowly trotting towards him. This figure seemed more human-like, mounted atop a large armoured horse whilst holding a massive pointy sword in one hand and the reins in the other. Yet, something did not _seem_ very human-like about him at all. With white glowing eyes visible beneath the sleek metal that made up his helmet and black smoky stuff erupting from the crevices, he looked quite intimidating indeed. Sonic dubbed him the boss-man and tittered to himself in excitement.

Keeping his cool, he tossed the dog in his right hand into the air and caught it again. Eying it with delight, Sonic stuffed the entire thing into his mouth and swallowed it whole as the enemy stepped closer still. He glanced at the towering knight almost mockingly and licked the chili from his fingers. Smiling to himself, he spun the remaining hot dog around on his hand before tossing it into the other. "Oh, I get it." He said to the lady calmly, spinning his chili dog around yet again. "No problem! I'm used to stuff like this!" He tossed it high and then vanished into the wind, stirring up clouds of dust in the air. He took out the entire posy of goons in a matter of milliseconds and could hear the young lady gasping at his incredible speed.

Sonic skidded to a halt directly below the chili dog as it reached the peak of his throw, placed a hand on his hip and held out the other with his eyes closed and waited patiently to catch it. Maybe he was just showing off, but it might have been enough to intimidate that boss-man over there. When the hot dog had finally fallen into his outstretched hand, he opened his eyes and gave his opponent a cocky grin. Feeling rather pleased with himself, he continued to spin it around on his hand as he waited for the knight to make a move. He'd seen what the spiky blue hedgehog could do and now Sonic was somewhat intrigued to see what he had to follow up from _that_ display of awesomeness.

All he did was stare him down. Sonic caught his chili dog. The knight flicked his wrist. Sonic readied himself to run and shot forwards.

"No, you mustn't!" The elf lady stated firmly, grabbing his wrist and pulled him back. Sonic yelped, realising he was going nowhere fast; despite how fast he moved his feet. She was telling him this _now!?_ What did _she_ know, anyway? He could take this guy. Eggman seemed like a malevolent phantom compared to _this_ boss-man.

The two comically flew back into a heap in the gravel. As Sonic recovered from having his aching head slammed into the ground for the second time, the elf lady shoved him to one side and stood up. Talk about _rude_. She started stirring up yet another cloud of dust around them into a gigantic tornado. He realised that she must be a mage, there was no other explanation for this magical display. He really _was_ in another world.

That was when Sonic noticed the other chili dog spiralling around them in the squall. "Nooooooooo!" He cried, reaching for it helplessly as it blew out of his reach. Unfortunately, that was the _last_ thing he noticed.


	2. Chapter 2 - The Way of the Knight

- CHAPTER TWO -

_The Way of the Knight_

In the midst the towering trees of birch, lush grass grew tangled and undisturbed. The sunrise had not yet broken the horizon, so the land was still bathed in mist and dark shadows. A large bed of lavenders had blossomed amongst the long grass and disguised a shallow dyke in the ground in such way that anyone unfortunate enough to step through that particular spot would most likely sink through the flowers and trudge home with cold feet.

As the birds uttered their sweet morning birdsong, a swirl of black magic erupted into the mist. A blue figure tumbled onto the waterlogged grass with a great splash. With buckled red shoes filled with dirty water and significantly wet socks, he sat up. "Ow…" The blue figure groaned. It was plainly obvious that he was a hedgehog from the great mess of stiffened spines sprouting out from the behind his head and down his back. He sat there rubbing his head, having wacked it against an oddly shaped tree root upon re-entry. Shaking himself out of the dizzy spell, Sonic looked across the damp grass and glanced around at his new location. "Talk about a rough – hey, where're you going?" He blurted out, noticing the woman who had appeared far more gracefully than he had just done as she walked away. He leapt to his feet and followed after her towards the clearing. The fog was fairly deep in this part of the woods, so he had to be careful not to overlook tripping hazards in the tangled grass and end up on his face again. "At least tell me what's going on!" He requested, slowing his pace to walk beside her. "Why'd you stop me?" I could've taken him down," He thrust out a hand as if to point out the obvious, "no problem!"

The elf lady sighed and did not meet his eye. "You do not understand. He cannot be wounded."

Sonic looked at her oddly and quickened his pace to step in front of her. "How can _that_ be?" He questioned, stopping in his tracks. Now was high time to figure out what was going on. He still did not know much about this magical lady. Yet, despite how they may have gotten off on the wrong foot, he _did_ trust that she was the good guy. Not that he was thinking black and white or anything.

"He bears the scabbard of Excalibur." She explained, as if it was the answer to _everything._ Sonic on the other hand, was a little less than clueless.

"Hey, wait a second…" He mused, standing there in thought. "I think I've heard that name before." The elf lady watched him in amusement as Sonic pondered. He may be fast on his feet, but was not nearly as fast at remembering things. "Ummm… Lemme see…"

"Excalibur is King Arthur's sword."

"Oh yeah," Sonic said in realisation, "right! So that means…"

"This is the land ruled by King Arthur." She finished for him.

"Whoa!" Sonic exclaimed, looking around at the woods in a new light. Surprisingly, he had read some of those books. "But was that really the King himself? I mean, he seemed way different in the stories."

"Let us go." The lady insisted, realising that they had been standing in the grassy clearing longer than she would have liked. "We can talk along the way." She added, pulling up her hood. "Let me introduce myself. I am Merlina the Wizard."

Sonic gave her the thumbs up, finally able to fully call her his friend. "I'm Sonic." He announced, "Sonic the Hedgehog."

"It has been a pleasure meeting you, Sonic." She said, continuing the journey through the grass.

"Likewise." Sonic shrugged, scuffing his heel in the dirt before trailing behind. "Why'd you bring me here, anyway?"

"Before you are to begin your quest, there are several things I must ask of you." Merlina explained, navigating her way through the forest of tall birch trees.

"Oh," Sonic said surprised, following her route through the towering trunks, "urm, what can I do for you, Merlina?"

"First, I would like you to get accustomed to our world."

"Sounds good." Sonic grinned, in spite of himself; this brought back memories of his previous visit to another world. "The rules seem a little different this time around…"

The wizard led him through the trees until they met back up with the path laid with gravel. They appeared to be at the entrance to a small village. Sonic assumed that there must be a lake nearby as parts of the land were flooded. To his right, a rickety wooden bridge crossed the water and led up to a Celtic gatehouse with small flaming torches lining its supports. The fires lit the path effectively and acted as a barrier against the lingering mist.

Directly his right, an old abandoned coal cart was left overturned and its content scattered around it. Among the damp pieces of coal, various tools led forgotten, such as shovels, an axe and an old sword that had been stuck firmly in the ground.

"I want you to learn swordsmanship," Merlina announced, "starting from the basics."

"Swords, eh?" Sonic smirked, pulling the rusted weapon out of the dirt and swung it around briefly to get the feel of it. The weight was okay, but the sword was as almost as big as he was. "Well, if that's how you guys role around here, why not? Lay it on me, sister!" He said, springing in his step and rushed over the bridge.

"Swing away!" Merlina called after him, accepting that Sonic was a man of action and would not stick around for a tutorial.

Sonic rounded the corner and it came to his attention that bright red apples were manifesting in his path, showing him the way. "Hm," He smiled to himself, "Merlina."

He trudged through the damp grass, twisting in and out, across the stone bridges and skipping over puddles, all the while following the trail of apples. They brought back memories of misty orbs he had encountered in the past that a certain Arabian genie had set him the task to collect – for what reason made him think of this, he did not know.

"Sonic, have you ever wielded a sword in the past?" Merlina's voice was heard so clearly, it was as if she was whispering in his ear.

"Briefly." Sonic recalled, the rusty sword in his hand scraping along the ground momentarily as he crossed a curved stone bridge. Sonic grunted and held it higher. "I'm usually against the whole arm thing, though. I don't know if you noticed back there, but I can handle myself without them."

"When a blade is present on the field of battle, it is essential that each knight is in possession of a blade of their own. Thus, it is the only way to gain respect and followers."

"Yeah, I read that." Sonic laughed. "Like, respectful chivalry or something, thanks for reminding me. A knight won't fight someone unless they could defend themselves."

"Precisely." Merlina agreed, "We may make a knight of you, yet."

"Hey!" Sonic exclaimed. He could feel himself blushing. "I'm just here to save the world and then I'm outta here. I'm not planning on adopting any title other than the one I already got, _Sonic_. Don't knights like, call each other 'sir' or somethin'? 'Don't know if I like the sound o' that…"

A large wooden target appeared in front of him and Sonic had about half a second to do something about it. "Whoa!" He yelped, breaking it in two with the hilt of his sword. "Jeez Merlina, a little warning next time!"

"A knight is always on their guard." She informed him. "One will not warn you before they attack, Sonic, that you must learn."

"I know, I know. It'd be pretty stupid if someone actually _called_ their attacks, wouldn't it? Merlina – trust me. I'm all about the element of surprise. Gimme some more o' those; I wanna smash something."

Sure enough, in the grassy waterlogged field ahead, wooden targets appeared scattered across the green.

"Yes, you are very surprising." Merlina mocked, "Those that want to retain the element of surprise tend not to 'smash' things."

"Yeah, yeah; I get it." Sonic rolled his eyes. "Now, do ya want me to learn to fight with a sword or what? To do that, I need to smash things." He sprang forward and swiped the long weapon out in front of him and cut clean through the wood as if it were as thin as paper.

"You have a strong arm." Merlina applauded "That should aid you well."

"Shh!" Sonic insisted, strafing to the right for another attack. "I'm not done yet." He swung left, right and then leapt up. He shot down into the next target, curling into a ball as he did so and stuck out the sword. As he span, the blade sliced through the wood of the remaining six targets within moments. Sonic whistled. "That was _tight!_ Tell me you saw that!"

"All I see is a reckless sword swinger." Merlina commented "Sonic, what would you have done if a townsperson happened to be in range?"

Sonic rolled his eyes again and swung the sword over his shoulder as he continued to run, his footsteps echoed as he charged through the passageway of a gatehouse. "I guess I'd… be more careful."

"You need more training." Merlina's voice droned on. "How are you expecting to gain followers if you harm those you sought to protect?"

Sonic cleared his throat loudly, running down a curved dirt path that disappeared off into the trees. "Fair enough if these people want to be my friend, but _follow_ me, I don't like the sound o' that either. I'm too fast anyway – nobody would keep up."

"I'm not quite sure you understand." Merlina persisted. "Sonic, meet me at the lake on the other side of this grove."

The blue hedgehog gazed ahead toward the trees. To the left of him, a tall brick wall stood prominently. Weathered by the watery mist and forever damp grass. The path he trod on ran alongside a small hillside that overlooked the misty forest below and continued to wind down into it. In the far distance, the white fog was intense and made it impossible to see the horizon.

He followed the path into the woods, slowing his pace when he realised that the fog lingered under the trees and he could not see far in front of him. Sonic skidded on his heels and stepped into a walk. The long rusted sword over his shoulder was feeling substantially awkward to handle now that he had stopped running, he pulled a face and discarded it without a second thought.

Sonic paced warily through the foggy woods, ravens uttering their sunrise calls somewhere out of sight and an owl hooted off in the other direction, its cry echoing through the leaves and tickling the blue hedgehog's ears. As he stepped further and further away from the treeline he started to pick up on the sound of running water. This assured him that he was venturing the right way, all the while sticking to the muddy dirt path. He didn't have time to get lost in the woods right now, or else he'd be reading the wrong book. Knights were cooler than wolves that ate grandmas anyway.

After a few minutes of walking through the trees he came to a wide break in the treeline. Through the mist, the distant sparkles of the lake water caught the beginnings of the sun's rays and Sonic let out a low whistle. It was an impressive sight – if only he were still on vacation to sit and enjoy the view. He stood and watched the water ripple at the reeds, but he could have sworn he saw a figure manifest in the mist for a moment, baring the resemblance of a certain girl he had stood up outside the book-world. He concluded that he was merely feeling guilty, so he shook his head sternly and put it down as his mind playing tricks.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Merlina's voice was heard from behind him.

"Hm?" Sonic piped up, spinning around. "Oh. Hey Merlina."

"Sonic, you've no sword."

The hedgehog shrugged, "Dropped it; my bad."

"While you remain in this world I will not have you unarmed. The Knights of the Round Table are likely to be searching for us." Merlina informed him. "Sonic, they are under the influence of King Arthur; they will not hesitate to kill you if they get the chance."

The two began walking alongside the lake in the centre of the clearing. Sonic had no idea where they were heading, so he trailed behind slightly and looked out over the water. "What's this Arthur's deal, anyway?" He piped up, watching two brightly coloured dragonflies dance over the waves. "Was he always this scary looking, or haven't I read this part yet? Don't put it past me; I'm pretty new at this."

"He was once a wise and just ruler." Merlina said in admiration. "He was blessed with noble Knights and praised by all. However…"

"…He got a little side-tracked?" Sonic suggested, referring to the armoured monsters from before.

"Yes. Nimue, the Lady of the Lake, gave him Excalibur. He was bewitched by the power of immortality its scabbard bestowed. He became immortal, summoning legions from the underworld. He is plunging his kingdom into a world of horror and chaos."

Sonic sprang in his step and caught up with her. "You mean like a big ol' haunted house?" He laughed, deciding that he would in fact enjoy this little adventure. "This'll be cool! It'll be like Halloween all year long!"

Merlina stopped in her tracks and looked out over the lake. "Maybe so, but I fear there will be nobody left to enjoy it. We must act _now._"

Sonic looked at her in confusion. That was exactly what he was about to do before she pulled him away. If he was going to act 'now' he would have done it already. There was just one small problem with this plan; "You mean take out King Arthur? What about the immortal thing?"

To his surprise, the wizard thrust her staff out and pointed over the water towards the rising sun. "Beyond this misty lake sleeps a sacred sword." Sonic squinted and held a hand up to shield his eyes from the sun's rays as he studied the path ahead. From the looks of it, he would have to travel around the lake and cut back into the forest again. "With that sword-"

Sonic slipped past her and started jogging beside the coastline. "Yeah, yeah, I'll go get it." He called over his shoulder; he had heard the story countless times before, this so called 'sacred sword' was no different. Now that he had a goal the only thing left to do was reach it. "'Be back in a flash!"

"Wait! Sonic!" Merlina called after him, taking something out of her coat.

Curious, Sonic skidded to a halt and waited for her to catch up and the wizard slipped a right handed gauntlet over his gloved hand. He looked hesitant as he studied it at first before finally understanding. The gauntlet was crafted of silvery steel and it fit around his fingers almost perfectly. The wrist guard look as though it were made of gold judging by the colour and the design pointed towards his wrist. A round cut ruby sat impressively in the centre. Sonic was right to let out a low whistle as he admired the piece of armour; it was probably worth a fortune.

"Good luck." Merlina smiled, nodding in recognition of his silent gratitude and with a wink of a bright green eye, he was gone faster than the wind.


	3. Chapter 3 - To the Sacred Sword

- CHAPTER THREE -

_To the Sacred Sword_

Things could have gone smoother with the departure to attain the sacred sword. As Merlina had insisted he should not be travelling without a weapon, Sonic had to retrace his steps and pick the rusty sword he had so recreantly abandoned, much to his dismay. This task alone wasted half a minute and he was quick to let Merlina know about it. The sooner he had his hands on a weapon that wouldn't fall apart when he clashed blades the better; from what he had heard about this place so far, traveling after the last light of dusk was dangerous, even for a respected knight.

"The fate of our kingdom rests in your hands, do not fail us." Merlina's voice carried with the wind. Sonic, who happened to be running against the gale was only just able to hear it. His shoes flattening lavenders as ran towards the sunrise. The sky was now a hazy shade of pink, the sun just breaking the horizon in the distance. Ahead, the misty lake broke off into a river and a small family of swans drifted peacefully over the water, the three cygnets splashing casually behind their parents.

Sonic cut over the river across a stone bridge connected to the bank by a wooden ramp. "You can count on me. I mean, stuff like this happens to me all the time." The same torches he had seen earlier that morning stood at the end of the bridge either side of his path. Tall ruined structures emerged out of the water ahead, a clear sign that this part of the forest used to be civilised but the floods drove the people further away. The grassy bank he was navigating was just wide enough to manoeuvre while the lake lapped at either side. His path wound around the bare trees and crumbling pillars so gracefully, it was hard to think it was manmade.

Merlina, of course wanted to keep him busy, so sure enough Sonic was met with a trail of apples leading him towards even more wooden targets for him to break. He set himself a personal challenge to make sure he broke all of them on his way to where the sacred sword 'slept'. He wondered what Merlina meant by that, it must have been some strange figure of speech; swords don't sleep, do they? At least they didn't in his world; he'd have to see for himself when he got there.

As Sonic broke through the targets he could feel his temporary weapon crumbling beneath his grip. He had to be careful with it, or else it wouldn't last the journey. Running around the next bend, he came across a new obstacle that had an odd looking being dressed in a long brown hooded coat painted upon it. "What's this supposed to be?" He piped up, rushing past the creation, his slipstream causing it to spin around on its support.

"The next stage of your training." Merlina answered as-a-matter-of-factly. "These represent bystanders, so see they go unharmed."

Sonic snorted. "I said I was new to the whole knight thing, I've been tangling with enemies long enough to know the cost of carelessness."

"Prove it."

"With pleasure." Sonic grinned, whirling through air to crack through a pair of targets before landing neatly onto a rail that prevented the large beaten structure to collapse. This part of the path was currently covered by the lake, so Sonic had to improvise. When the rail ended, he leapt towards the ivy covered wall ahead and used it to propel himself higher.

Merlina seemed impressed. "Are all creatures from your world as co-ordinated as you?"

Sonic's shoes met with the handrail of the next level and he grinded along it, battling through ivy and smashing targets with his blade. He used the tower as a push off point and continued grinding along the long ruined turret roof, smashing targets then vaulted over the gap to continue grinding along a thick ivy vine and he hopped over the leaf stalks to meet back with solid ground again at the base of a curved tunnel that came out at a long wooden bridge over the water, torches lining its supports.

Through the dense fog, a stampede of brown boars blocked the way. "Watch out!" Merlina warned, "Defend yourself!"

Sonic rolled his eyes and jumped over them all with plenty of distance to spare. "No need."

Merlina clearly was not impressed by his attitude as the next few obstacles were far trickier than what she had initially been dishing out. Sonic found targets positioned right beside her 'bystanders' and a long line of them were blocking his way to the five targets behind. "This supposed to be hard?" He teased, not even the breeze of his blade passing disturbed the wooden bystanders.

No answer came from his instructor, but his statement was clearly answered by the next boar stampede. Despite being on a rickety wooden bridge and below a tunnel that would stop him dodging over them, Sonic still managed to avoid the herd in short, well timed leaps.

"Your ability with the sword has improved so quickly." Merlina finally acknowledged as Sonic weaved in and out over the path that was left by the flood. "I can hardly record the time before you held it."

"All this is too easy." Sonic yawned, dodging yet another stampede over a stone bridge. "Don't you have anything tougher? I'm falling asleep."

He finally came to a large clearing. Stone cobbled the ground beneath his feet and devastated pillars scattered the ground as if some kind of battle took place here. "Very well," Merlina chuckled, "why don't I prepare something a little more _challenging_?"

Sonic's spines quivered as a gust of wind erupted from behind. He stopped in his tracks. The sound was like nothing he had ever heard before. A lurid roar rumbled through the air and put the hedgehog on edge. He vigilantly darted his gaze in all directions to try and pinpoint the source of this sound as a humongous winged beast flew over his head. "Behold," Merlina announced as the creature landed before him, "the ruler of this lake: the Mist Dragon!"

The beast roared and its voice shook the ground, dust swept up and flew in all directions. The dragon's jade scales that were visible through the layer of moss that had grown over them glinted in the sunrise and left colourful light patterns through the haze. Sonic was stunned and he had a right to be – never in his fifteen years did he believe that one day he would catch a glimpse of a real-life dragon. He'd faced giant lizards, robotic beetles, manifests of Gaia…but _nothing_ like this. "Now Sonic, swing your sword!" Merlina hissed, clearly noticing his lack of movement.

"Er, right!" He swallowed, leaping in and began hitting the dragon on the nose with his rusty blade. This clearly did not have much of an effect on the dragon as it did not even flinch; all he was able to do was scrape moss from its scales. "This is useless." Sonic grunted "I can't - Whoa!" He leaped backwards as the dragon slammed its head into the ground. "This guy's got some _serious_ resistance." He concluded. "Look, buddy; I don't want to hurt you. Can you just move over a _teeny_ bit so I can get by?"

The dragon's roar sent Sonic flying backwards into a heap and his sword clattered against the ground beside him, a large chunk of the tip snapped clean off on the cobblestones. "Yeah, I didn't think so."

The dust cloud that the dragon's roar had created glinted in the sunlight and at that moment Sonic spotted an opening. There was a large crystallised horn upon the beast's head that redirected the sunlight and was the cause of the odd light patterns in the dust. He snatched up the sword and went for it, slicing the crystal clean off – a tactic he would have used with his spinball. The Mist Dragon roared in annoyance and took off in retreat. "Well Merlina, how was that? Did you see my real power?"

The wizard was stunned, "T-That was amazing! Defeating the Mist Dragon like it was nothing. The mark of a true knight…"

"N'aww, you flatter me." He said mockingly, making his way onto the grass towards the barrier, through the tunnel where ivy hung from the ceiling and into the forest beyond.

Trees were closely knitted together and their branches wove around each other creating shelter from the early sunlight. Narrow beams of light still managed to find their way through the leaves and the dirt trail was decorated in colourful leaf patterns in shades of greens and oranges. Shallow puddles also adorned the ground and left spectrums of colour at Sonic's wake as he raced through them.

"How much further to the scared sword?" Sonic asked, thrusting his heels forward to slide under a large root blocking his path, the old blade scraping the dirt as he did so. The tree the roots belonged to was leaning slightly to one side as the ground around the base was crumbling.

"Just beyond the clearing." Merlina quickly replied. "You can't miss it."

"Well, I see the clearing." Sonic nodded to the bright light leaking in through the treeline ahead. "I guess I made it."

"I'll meet you there in a moment." The wizard assured him as Sonic came to a stop just outside the clearing. He plunged his rusty weapon in the dirt and wandered into the sunlight.

A breeze swept through Sonic's spines as he took in the scene. It was quiet and peaceful, the only sounds to be heard belonged the leaves rustling in the wind and the distant birdsong. Before him a great ash tree grew atop a large rock formation and its roots hung over it in a thick blanket of woodland colour. A glint at the base of the tree caught his attention and he went still for a moment as he allowed his senses to pinpoint his route up to it.

Lunging forwards, Sonic hopped between the rocks with great precision and equilibrium, within a moment he stepped up to the magnificent sword wedged in the rock at the ash's roots. The blade caught the low sunlight and gleamed pleasantly, as if inviting him to step up and pull it out.

Despite being a brilliant sword with a golden hilt, it looked as though it had not been touched for years; nobody had pulled it out…

"This must be it." Sonic said out loud, stepping up behind the weapon and examined it. The sword was dull with dirt and moss – clear evidence it had been here for a long time. He began to wonder if he was even capable of pulling it out. A weapon that held such brilliance should not still be here stuck in a rock if the task of removing it was that simple.

He stepped up to it and placed his hands around the sword's grip, feeling the smooth surface with his fingers; it felt like it belonged there. He couldn't possibly walk away empty handed now and there was no way he was picking up that chipped blade again.

"Are you ready?" Merlina called up to him from the foot of the rock formation.

"Ready," Sonic repeated, quickly going over what this could mean. He glanced down at the wizard who was also gazing up at him in return. She had the hood of her violet cloak over her head, which shadowed her blue eyes. What was he signing up for here? It was just a bit of metal stuck in a rock, after all. "for what?"

"If you remove that sword and defeat King Arthur with it…" She began and Sonic started to ponder on this. He was really going to have to use this sword to end another. This was just a story, wasn't it? "You shall forever be the worst of knights, slayer of kings…" He knew where he stood in this; the kingdom was under the influence of some dark magic and there were innocent people caught up in the middle and he wasn't going to stand by and let them suffer. If he took up the quest of saving this land from itself he was going to be chased down either way.

Sonic closed his eyes for a moment and a grin took residence of his features, he removed his gauntleted hand from the hilt and held it out in an accepting shrug. "Guess I can't be the hero every time." He decided with a wink before retaining his firm grip on the handle of the sacred sword. Its warmth called out to him. He tensed up to prepare himself to yank the blade from the stone, but it slid out so effortlessly, like he himself had left it there. The freed blade sparkled majestically in sunlight as Sonic held it high; oblivious to what it meant to pull the sword from the stone.

"The sacred sword…" He marvelled, brushing dirt off the ruby in the hilt's centre with his thumb.

"It goes by the name Caliburn." Melina introduced him.

Sonic smirked and raised an eyebrow; it may be a _sacred_ sword, but it hardly looked any different from any other sword he had seen. "It's kinda sorry looking."

"Fool!" A voice rang out so suddenly, Sonic lost his grip on the handle and the blade swung forwards and smacked him in the face. Sonic yelped in alarm and managed to grab the handle before it clattered to the ground. "You are the chosen one!?" It was then Sonic realised that this sophisticated voice belonged to the sword – Caliburn, to be exact. "You are but a squire!"

"Oh yeah!?" Sonic sneered, glaring at his blade with amusement. "Says you!" He found it hilarious that he was being ridiculed by a not-so-inanimate object.

"The sword has a mind of its own." Merlina explained, "_It_ selects its bearer."

"Yeah," Sonic sniggered, directing his gaze away from the sword that insulted him to stop himself bursting into laughter, "well it's got a pretty smart mouth on it for a _sword_."

Caliburn was quick to shoot back its own insult. "Hmph! The impertinent one is you, knave!" Sonic had to admit, he admired this sword's wittiness; it was almost as sharp as he was, yet Sonic was sure he could cut through over twice of the amount of metal Caliburn was able to and he would have commented on that if he did not just receive a sudden chill through his spines as if they were being watched. "Brace yourself, for I shall train you until you are worthy!"

Sonic's ears pricked to the sound of a blade being drawn from behind him. He snatched up Caliburn and swivelled around to face the dark king Arthur standing amongst the clouds, mounted on his malicious steed. They had been discovered and Sonic was less than willing to miss this battle for a second time. "All right, professor!" He swiped the blade out beside him and prepared himself for his first duel as a knight. "Work your magic!"


	4. Chapter 4 - The Battle of the Blades

- CHAPTER FOUR -

_The Battle of the Blades_

A huge cloud of mist rose up and engulfed the land around the hill of which the ash stood. The armoured king's steed leapt from the clouds and its ghostly hooves that skimmed the grass parted the haze and Arthur swiped his blade to arouse the amateur knight Sonic into following. The dark king did not at all see him as threat and this provoked Sonic further, so he followed.

"Do not let him distract you." He heard his sword Caliburn warn as he stepped cautiously through the fog. "Acts of rash anger are not the wisest of moves to make."

"You don't know me." Sonic grumbled, hoisting the blade out to one side and continued onwards.

"I know you well enough, knave! You may be the chosen one, but you are still a student and you have much to learn."

"I have my own way of doing things." Sonic snarled, surveying the land with sharp eyes. "What I don't understand is why I have to take orders from a stupid sword!"

"This 'stupid sword' is the only chance you have to survive in this world, so I suggest you listen and listen well." Caliburn ordered and the impatient hedgehog let out a growl of disapproval. "If you want to argue in the midst of battle then you are more of a novice than I thought – especially if you are choosing to confront your allies."

Sonic could not help but let his guard down to roll his eyes; he did not like to be talked down to like this. It was in this brief moment of unawareness that a huge jagged blade sliced across his back. Sonic yelled in agony but was fast enough to jump out of the way before it did any real damage. His soles skidded along the dirt and he felt for the injury between his spines with his empty left hand. The injury in question was shallow, but when he retrieved his hand he concluded that it was bleeding from the red stains on the fingers of his glove. "Not wasting any time to cut me up, are ya?" He taunted his opponent with a smirk. The outline of the king and his steed were just visible through the fog by the lake.

"I warned you not to let your guard down, did I not?" The scared sword mocked.

"Not now, Caliburn!" Sonic said through gritted teeth, his eyes on King Arthur.

"Do not talk back to your superior, young knave. Have you forgotten that I am a sacred sword?"

"I don't care if you're a sword blessed by all the gods of Mount Olympus, just _shut up_!"

"We're not going to get along until you understand why you must be in possession of a sword." Caliburn acknowledged. "So let us call it truce and work together for this one battle."

Sonic grunted. "Alright." Due to the irritation of the damaged skin between the spines on his back, he shrugged his shoulders backwards briefly, all the while holding out his sword at the ready.

"Now let us see the power of your so-called sacred sword." King Arthur taunted as Sonic approached, his sectioned purple cape flowing in the wind. He reared his horse which unsettled the dirt at Sonic's feet and took off, leaving Sonic in the dust.

"After him!" Caliburn exclaimed.

"Let's hope he's not leading us into a trap." Sonic commented before following behind across the long stone bridge. It was far too narrow to overtake the horseback rider so he had no choice but to follow. He could feel blood trickling down his back, but he ignored it – it would dry up sooner or later.

"He's toying with me." Sonic murmured, narrowing his eyes. "Something's not right here..."

"What do you mean?" Caliburn asked.

"Forget it, let's just catch up." Sonic insisted. He shot forwards and met the horse at the rear. The rider pulled the reins and stopped so suddenly, Sonic stumbled over his own feet, pulled down by the weight of the sword.

"Remain calm." Caliburn warned. "You're going to need to counter until you spy an opening."

Sonic raised his gauntleted right hand above his head and blocked the king's blade with the flat of his sword. It was quite a skilful parry considering Sonic's lack of experience, however the amount of power Sonic could feel behind his opponent's blade did not seem humanly possible. He shunted the king's blade away and shot him a suspicious scowl, daring the horseman to attempt to finish him.

The two parried several more times, their weapons clashed and clanged against each other sending fiction sparks flying in all directions. King Arthur quickly swung low in an attempt to catch Sonic off guard, which was unsuccessful as he had jumped over the blade leaving his opponent open to a successful attack.

The horse whined as it reared up and took off through the stone tunnel at the end of the bridge. Sonic was feeling a lot more confident now that he had managed to break through his opponent's armour. He chased after the rider, handling his blade closely. Whatever King Arthur was playing at, there was no chance he could outrun the fastest thing alive. "You'll never get away!"

"Pursue me at your own peril, weakling!" King Arthur called over his shoulder, crossing over the flood on the remains of an elevated stone pathway.

Trees and ruined pillars shot out of the water on either side. The pathway was suddenly blocked by dark figures that manifested out of thin air. Sonic recognised these as Knights of the Underworld - they were not real living beings, but summons of dark energy given one purpose, to serve their summoner, King Arthur.

Sonic had to fight his way through this small army to get by. They wielded large shields as well as swords and they tried to knock him back. They were strong, but no match for Sonic's sword. He continued onwards, kicking a creature in the gut as it reached for his neck and knocked it into the barrier where it vanished in a cloak of dark magic.

Sonic's sword scraped the floor as he raced forwards, put all the strength he could muster into his swing and went for the dark King's enchanted armour. The horse came to a halt and Sonic's blade was blocked. He growled in annoyance and shrugged the enemy's blade away from his to carelessly swing a second time. He was countered yet again. King Arthur kicked him in the face; Sonic stumbled backwards but remained on his feet and his nose started bleeding.

Sonic wiped his face on the back of his glove and dove forwards, his head spinning and his depth perception suffered. He shook himself alert and swung his sword with such force, he nearly sent it flying out of his grip. King Arthur parried but was not prepared for the strength of Sonic's attack and his sword slipped. Sonic could barely believe it; he stood there in amazement a moment too long.

"Now is your chance!" Caliburn reminded him, putting Sonic's focus back where it belonged and he jumped up to strike King Arthur once again.

The King took off and the pathway curved off to the right, giving Sonic the advantage he needed. It was time to end this.

"You're not going to lose me!" Sonic shouted after him, lunging to the railings to head him off around the corner. His quick thinking paid off and he was able to overtake. He stood on the grass and held his blade up in front his face. Blood still dripped down his jaw, but was ignored. "Where do you think _you're_ going?" He taunted, the horse rearing up at the sudden obstacle. Sonic pointed the tip of his blade at King Arthur. "I know what your game is and I'm not playing along any longer."

King Arthur laughed. "Your blade is useless against me."

Sonic spotted the scabbard of Excalibur attached to the King's belt and it glinted in the sunlight, he studied it silently for a few moments before Caliburn spoke up.

"What is it?"

"Something about that –"

King Arthur lunged and Sonic jumped out of the way, he wasn't falling for the same trick twice. Arthur struck him again and Sonic blocked his attack with a flick of his blade.

"You're holding back." Caliburn informed him. "You shouldn't do that."

"He is too!" Sonic argued, "This guy's immortal, remember? He's been trying to run me down this entire battle."

"Then use that to your advantage, knave!"

Sonic dodged the king's swing and skidded through the damp grass, growling to himself. "I'm working on it."

"Your actions are reckless and without drive. It is getting you nowhere."

"Just trust me, alright? I know what I'm doing."

"Trust must be earned."

"Then just bear with me while I try something." Sonic insisted, rushing towards his opponent. "Stay sharp, or whatever."

At the last moment before their blades clashed, Sonic fleeted out of range and threw himself behind the knight, the force of his blade knocking the king right off his steed and onto the grass. The horse reared up and fled.

"Yes!" Sonic cheered, wiping his nose, "Enough of the running already, seriously." He paused, looked oddly for a second and turned his gaze away mouthing a single phrase. _"Did I just say that?"_

King Arthur laughed mockingly and untied the scabbard from his belt. "Your efforts are useless. Are you not aware that I am immortal?"

Blue magic spiralled out of the scabbard and concealed the king in twisting azure energy. Any effort Sonic had made to attack vanished instantly until there was not a single dent or scratch in his armour.

"This could go on forever." Sonic groaned, shooting his blade an irritated scowl. "'You sure you're a sacred sword?"

"It is you, sir, who lacks the proper fighting skills." It replied bluntly.

The king stood and summoned his horse, manifesting back behind the reins from thin air. "Hah!" Arthur scoffed, watching the pair squabble amongst themselves yet again. "A fool of a knight, not even worth slaying."

"You see?" Caliburn said coolly "He thinks so, too!"

"Well, it's _your _fault!" Sonic argued, holding his blade out in front of his face. "You're a _sad_ excuse for a teacher!"

The king rode away into the distance; the pair were too busy arguing to notice. Merlina stood to one side and watched them for a few moments before speaking. "For as long as he bears that scabbard…" Sonic looked over, suddenly realising her presence and could not help but feel slightly embarrassed knowing she had likely seen everything. "We may never be able to defeat King Arthur."

"So, what are we gonna do?" Sonic asked, reverting his attention from Caliburn completely who had taken to bouncing up and down on the point of its blade.

"We must ask the scabbard's former owner how to hinder its power." Caliburn explained, its tone almost suggested it was in fact obvious.

Sonic shot Caliburn a look. "And who would that be?" His reply held a tint of hostility.

"Nimue," Merlina cut in, clearly not liking where their conversation was going, "the Lady of the Lake. The one I mentioned earlier."

Sonic snatched Caliburn out of the dirt and hoisted the sword over his right shoulder. "What are we waiting for?" He insisted, pacing back towards the bridge they had just passed. "Let's go pay her a little visit."

"I fear it may not be as simple as that." Caliburn warned.

Sonic pulled the blade from his shoulder and stared at it in confusion. "Whaddya mean?"

"You shall see for yourself. Onward, my young knave."

Continuing his path across the wooden bridge, Sonic shot his hands out beside him in frustration, Caliburn included. "Stop calling me 'knave!'" He ordered, "I'm Sonic the Hedgehog!"

"Very well then." Caliburn agreed. "I shall call you Knave _the Hedgehog."_

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Whatever, you oversized letter opener."


End file.
